Never Let Go
by lairyfight
Summary: Teddy Lupin and Harry Potter have a difficult job at hand. Well, being an Auror has never been simple, but when the victim is a part of the family, things are bound to become far worse. Relations are put to the test, and old secrets resurface. And sometimes, it may just get too personal…
1. Prologue

**A/N: Next Gen is my favourite era to write about, and I just couldn't help but write a murder mystery surrounding the Weasley children. Teddy Lupin, of course, is one of my favourites, and I absolutely love James. If any of you read my other one shots, you might know that my absolute favourite is Albus Potter, but he doesn't really play much of a role in this one. Honestly, I wanted to try writing some other Next Gen kid for this one. **

**Just a quick note:**** This story contains cousin pairings. While it is not incest, and is legal in Britain, I know many people are usually against it. I'm sorry if this puts you off reading, but really, if you don't like it, then don't read it. But please, don't leave flames or offensive reviews. They hurt a lot and end up making one really demoralised.**

**Anyway, if you do decide to read it, thank you! I hope you guys like it! **

* * *

**Full Summary:**

_**DAUGHTER OF MINISTER FOR MAGIC FOUND DEAD**_

_Lucy Weasley, youngest daughter of Minister for Magic Percy Weasley, was found dead in her room early yesterday morning. Forensics has revealed that the death occurred due to poisoning, though the nature of the poison is yet to be confirmed._

Harry Potter has a difficult job at hand. Well, being an Auror has never been simple, but when the victim is a part of the family, things are bound to become far worse. Relations are put to the test, and old secrets resurface. And sometimes, it may just get too personal…

* * *

Lucy Weasley was late for breakfast.

On a balmy July morning, Percy Weasley sat at his breakfast table, skimming through the day's issue of the Morning Prophet and trying to find something newsworthy. In one hand was a cup of strong tea, which he was sipping at regular intervals as he waited for his daughter to come down. He had been disappointed with the paper so far - the news consisted mainly of things such as gargantuan daisies or the inauguration of the fastest broomstick to date. _Useless tosh,_ he thought as he turned a page. Why bother with inaugurating a broomstick when a faster one would come out and take its place in a few months?

"Percy, that's your third cup of tea," his wife said as she sat down beside him, looking at him with her eyebrows raised. "And you've already finished the paper twice! You know, if you are so worried about her, go to her room and call her down. It's maddening to see you two like this."

He shook his head. "She'll think I'm imposing on her," he replied, setting down the paper and turning around to look at her. "As it is, she's not talking to me, so-"

"Percy," Audrey interrupted, looking into his eyes. "You went through her personal things. She's supposed to be a bit ticked off."

"But I'm her father; I'm supposed to be worried about who she's dating!" he cried exasperatedly. Even with two teenage daughters, he still wasn't sure if he was doing the parenting job properly - and considering his most recent showdown with his eldest daughter, he decided he was very, very bad at it. "It's my job, isn't it? It's really not my fault for caring about her. Just… tell me where I'm going wrong," he finished with a sigh

To his surprise, Audrey laughed. He loved it when she laughed; her eyes crinkled slightly around the edges and a slight dimple formed in her left cheek. Ever since the first day he'd seen her laughing, he'd fallen in love with her.

On Fred's third death anniversary, Percy couldn't bear to face his family. After Fred's death, Percy had felt like he had taken a blow to the chest. There were times when he was unable to eat or sleep, when grief and guilt ate at him like acid. Fred's funeral was the worst day of his life, ever. He couldn't bring himself to say goodbye to his brother, knowing it was his fault he laid there. He hoped his mind was playing a joke on him, that it was fooling him and showing him false visions.

Every morning started bleak and dry and Percy would have to convince himself that he wasn't a murderer. That it was a mistake anyone could have made. Deep down, though, he knew it was his fault that Fred had died. If Fred hadn't been distracted by him, if he hadn't been talking to Percy when that wall collapsed, he could have gott that extra second to save himself. A moment's distraction had cost him his brother's life. What bothered him the most was that Fred's murderer had got away that day. Percy hadn't been able to track the bastard down. Rookwood had been killed that very same day anyway by a stray Killing Curse aimed at someone else by one of his own kind, but Percy was far from satisfied. Seeing Rookwood's dark, vacant eyes staring up into the vast sky hadn't been enough for him. He had wanted to destroy Rookwood himself, to punish him for taking away his brother. Percy had wanted to take revenge, to pull Rookwood apart, limb by limb… to see the light leaving his eyes. And he hated his luck for not being able to make it happen.

As everyone had been leaving for the services to be held at Fred's grave, Percy had slowly slipped out (for his mother would have dragged him along if she had seen him leaving) and had gone to the Leaky Cauldron for a drink. He had never accompanied his family for the services, and he could tell that Gorge hated him for it. He had even gone to the point of calling Percy a coward, and though Percy had hit him hard in the face, he knew George was right. But while George had lost his twin, he was not the one responsible for it. He could never know how Percy felt, for it had been all Percy's fault.

He had been sitting in the pub all alone, clutching a bottle of Firewhiskey, bringing it up to his lips unsteadily from time to time. And Percy had been on his third bottle when he saw _her_ for the first time.

She came in like an angel, dressed in white robes, her blonde hair billowing in the wind as she stepped into the pub from the howling street outside. And yet that angel looked like her whole world was falling apart. Her grey eyes were bloodshot. Her face was drained of all colour, and her robes were askew. She sat down on the barstool beside him, ordered a glass of gin, and then stared into blankness.

Later on he found out that her boyfriend had left her for someone else. He couldn't believe how someone could toss aside such a beautiful creature as herself for anything else, for he knew that anything else would be unappealing compared to her. They often met at the Leaky Cauldron for drinks afterwards, and gradually Percy found himself being drawn to her in a way he'd never been towards any other woman.

As days passed, she became more open to him. She told him that she worked as an Unspeakable in the Department of Mysteries, and Percy was glad to find that she worked at the Ministry. To his own surprise, Percy would often leave work early and go down to the tenth level to wait for her outside her Department. Then they would leave work together and head for lunch, talking about subjects ranging from mundane things as ants to deeper things like politics or the meaning of life. Audrey, he knew, knew far more about the subject than he could ever imagine, but her research on the subject was classified and she couldn't share it with him. Percy hated mysteries, but he let it pass. After all, she couldn't know about the internal affairs of Shacklebolt's campaign, either.

One sunny Sunday morning, as they sat outside Fortescue's ice-cream shop, Percy told her about his ambitions to be the Minister for Magic and change the world. She laughed, to his dismay - but then he realized that she wasn't mocking him; in fact, she had said, she was glad to have found someone like him with a purpose in his life and who shared her enthusiasm for work, and that she was finally starting to enjoy herself. That day as they sat together under the azure sky sipping hot chocolate, he finally realized that he was falling in love with her.

He couldn't believe that he was the same Percy Weasley who loved his work more than anything else.

The thing about grief, he realized soon, was that it changed people. It made them someone they weren't. His grief had in the end brought him closer to everyone in his life.

"Percy, are you listening to me?"

He jerked out of his reverie. She was waving her hand in front of his face, an exasperated smile on her face.

"Sorry, dear," he said quickly, wiping that lovesick grin off his face. "What were you saying?"

"You should really apologize to her," she prompted, trying to keep her face straight.

"But -"

"You know how stubborn she is, Perce. Until you apologize to her she won't talk to you. And she's a big girl," she said patiently, taking his hand in hers. "She knows how to deal with boys. And she knows your position in the ministry, Percy; she won't do anything that will upset you or dishonour your name. She's old enough to know what's right and what's wrong. Give her a chance to prove it to you."

Percy didn't want to admit it, but what his wife said made perfect sense, he knew. And he hated it. Lucy was his little girl, and she was still too young to be dating anyone. And just to know if she was in any sort of relationship, he had snuck into her room when she was downstairs and gone through her drawers to find any sort of hint of the existence of a boy.

But to his chagrin, Lucy had seen him and the face-off that had followed was worse than one of Mrs Weasley's tirades, he recalled with a grimace.

"She really has grown up, hasn't she," he mumbled.

"And now you're finally speaking sense!" Audrey said happily, clapping her hands. "Bravo!"

"So I should go up to apologize?"

"Double bravo to you," she replied, standing up and kissing him on the cheek. She picked up his empty cup and took it up to the sink, and placed a cleaning charm on all the dishes. "Now you go up there and make up with your daughter while I clean up. Molly'll be back from Fleur's place soon, and if I'm not wrong, Dominique will be will her. Those two are attached to the hip."

Percy laughed. He got up, pecked his wife on the cheek, and, squaring his shoulders, shuffled up to his daughter's room.

Percy knocked twice, but Lucy didn't answer. She was probably asleep, Percy thought, which was a good thing. He'd tiptoe in, kiss her on the forehead and wake her up like he used to do when she was a child, and he'd apologize. And then things would return to normal, he thought as a huge grin split across his face.

He pushed the door.

The door opened with a creaking noise, swinging in a wide arc until it hit the wall behind it. The blinds were drawn, and the minimal amount of sunlight diffusing in through the red curtains gave the room an oddly eerie feel. He peered into the dark room, his eyes adjusting to the dimness inside.

Lucy's bed was empty. The blanket had been carelessly tossed aside, revealing the white bedspread underneath. The pillows were dented inwards, and the sheets were crumpled up, so she had certainly been sleeping in it. The bathroom door was ajar and the lights out; she was definitely not in there.

_Where is she?_ Percy thought.

"Lucy?" He called out. Resting his hands on the doorframe, he leaned in. "Luce, are you in here?"

The room was completely vacant, except for the furniture and a small bundle of clothes at the base of her bed. He scanned the room, an oddly apprehensive feeling rising up in his chest. Something was terribly wrong, he thought as his heart started to beat faster. A lump formed in his throat. Lucy was nowhere to be seen. There was nothing odd about her room, though, except for the bunch of clothes; Percy knew that Lucy was a perfectionist and hated when anything was messy -

He peered at the bundle. And then he realized it was not a bundle at all.  
He staggered.

And then he let out a bone-chilling howl.

_No, please, no…_ He thought frantically, leaning onto the doorframe, his legs unable to support him any longer. The air seemed to have left his lungs. He couldn't breathe. _Not this. Please let this not be true…_

Footsteps thudded up the stairs. "Percy, are you alright?" Audrey cried from the landing, her voice panicky. A second later she skidded into view, her eyes widening at the dishevelled form of her husband. "Percy, wh-what happened, what - why did you -"

"Lu- she- there- " He could say no more. He sank to the floor as his legs finally gave way. His hands shaking uncontrollably, he pointed into the room.

Audrey's eyes followed the direction of his finger, wondering what on earth had him so shaken up.

And then she saw it.

Her mouth widened into a silent scream as she collapsed onto the floor, her fingers clutching at her face.

Lucy Weasley lay on the floor, her body oddly contorted, her brown eyes staring into nothingness. She was dead. 

**A/N 2: How did you like it? Please review! I'd love to know your thoughts.**

**-Lairyfight**


	2. Chapter 1: On the Case

**A/N: Thanks for reading the story, guys :). Review replies:**

**ginnyandharryluvr: Thank you so much! I'm glad you liked it :D**

**fitzsimmons-bbc-and-cats: Thanks for the review! But I've checked and re-checked - according to the books and the hp wikia its Ministry OF magic and Minister FOR magic. :)**

**DISCLAIMER: I own nothing.**

* * *

Teddy Lupin had wanted to be an Auror ever since he could remember.

As he grew up, he had seen his godfather capture what he had termed "baddies". Harry Potter had been a hero, a shining beacon of light for everyone in times of need. Teddy had always dreamt about following in his footsteps. And he had finally achieved his goal, after countless hours of rigorous training and studying till the crack of dawn.

What he hadn't envisioned were the piles upon piles of boring paperwork.

Teddy dropped his quill and slumped. The day hadn't even started and every inch of his desk was covered with stacks of files from Aurors who needed their works filed and compiled, only to be stored away in some dusty old dungeon. Teddy's job was simple: read the latest cases and decide what was important. Then he'd compile them in a file and throw the rest of the unnecessary details into the rubbish bin. It was very easy, really. Too easy.

Sometimes, when the rest of the trainees were busy on other cases, Harry would take Teddy on smaller assignments to take notes and learn how fieldwork was like. Harry would do most of the poking around and ask Teddy about his opinions. He would then analyze Teddy's ideas, tell him where he was going wrong and where he was right, and then he would explain how the case really was. Together, they would then solve the case. In Teddy's opinion, he learned far more in the investigations with Harry than he ever did by studying hundreds of case files.

But today was not one of those days, much to his annoyance. He was stuck in the filing cabinet all by himself, surrounded by musty shelves and creaky drawers… and the cooling charm was not working, either.

_Great,_ he thought irritably. _Just my bloody luck._

He needed fresh air, he thought. Closing the file he was working on, he grabbed his robes from the back of his chair and headed out of the door.

Harry, he knew, wasn't working on any case at the time. Wondering if his godfather was up for a chat, Teddy made his way past the crowd of Aurors towards the door of Harry's office. Some of the Aurors would look up and wave and Teddy would happily wave back. Others, though, often ignored him. And one of them was the surly and rather old Williamson, who would look at him and wrinkle his brows in what was ill-disguised disgust. Teddy really hated the man.

Williamson's main problem was that Teddy's father was a werewolf, and he had tried countless times to convince Percy Weasley that Teddy was not to be trusted. Percy, however, would turn a deaf ear to his words, for he had liked Remus Lupin and refused to differentiate about him for his condition. Harry didn't like Williamson either, but he couldn't do anything about it; Williamson was a senior Auror and had a high case closure rate. Until Williamson retired (and that was still around a year away) they were stuck with him.

Shaking his head, Teddy knocked on Harry's door.

"Come in!"

Teddy turned the doorknob and entered. Harry's office had a bureaucratic look about it, and yet it looked rather homely. The wooden floorboards gleamed brightly as though recently polished, and the walls were covered with shelves stacked full of books and case files. Though Teddy was sure Harry hardly ever went through them, they were a bit haphazardly stacked; Teddy had a sneaky feeling Harry did that just so it seemed he was a busy person. In front of a rectangular wooden table were two chairs for guests, and despite of their formal look they were very comfortable. Behind the table on a revolving wooden chair sat Harry, his back to the door, poring over a long piece of parchment whose bottom had disappeared from view. Harry's emerald green cloak hung from the back of the chair.

"Harry, do you have a moment?"

Harry turned, and on seeing Teddy his eyes lit up. He grinned and placed the file on the table. "Teddy, I haven't seen you in a while," he said. "What brings you here?"

"Just popped by to see how you were doing," he replied, walking over to the desk. Harry motioned for him to have a seat, which he gladly took. "I took a break."

"It's a good thing you dropped by," Harry said, taking off his glasses and polishing them with the hem of his robes. He looked exhausted. "It's been a hectic day. The international desk has a new lead on the man running the Hallmark case."

Teddy had briefly heard about that one. A Dark Wizard had been making deals with various businessmen around the country, and every single wizard who had signed a deal with him turned up dead, with their vaults mysteriously wiped clean. The legal documents all showed signs of very dark magic, though none of it could be traced back to the caster.

"Is he going to attack businesses abroad?"

Harry nodded. "Dawson tells me about a new business that's suddenly popped up in Egypt. It's making a deal with the biggest flying carpet company. What do you think we should do?"

"Me?" Teddy sputtered, surprised. "But this is a major case, Harry! I think you should -"

"I have theories," Harry interrupted, smiling grimly. "Tell me your opinion."

"Well," Teddy said, frowning. "Maybe talk to that company and somehow bring him to England, where you have the jurisdic-"

A sudden whooshing noise cut him off. A second ago, the fire had turned emerald green, and a letter had popped out of the fire and landed on Harry's desk.

Harry curiously picked up the letter and looked at the name inscribed. "It's Ginny," he said, smiling. He unfolded the paper and scanned through it. "Probably wants to know when I'll -"

Harry froze.

"Harry?" Teddy could sense something was terribly wrong. Harry stared at the letter, his eyes wide with horror, his mouth gaping open. For a second, Teddy feared for the worst. What if someone -

He snatched the letter from Harry, who had gone numb with shock. His heart beating wildly, Teddy read through the letter.

In an instant, all his fears came true.

* * *

Teddy stood in the corridor in front of Lucy's room, unable to process what was happening. The entire family was herded together, some silently weeping, others stone-faced and disbelieving. In the middle of Lucy's room was Percy's hunched figure, sobbing beside the still form of his eldest daughter. The once strong and proud Minister was pitifully crumpled up, completely shattered. Beside him sat Audrey, and it killed Teddy to see her staring wide eyed into vacant space. Somehow it was even worse than Percy's tortured howls.

His mind flashed back on the note.

_Come to Percy's house quickly. Lucy's dead. - Ginny._

Lucy was dead.

His rebellious, annoyingly smart cousin was gone.

A lump formed in his throat. He wouldn't cry. He didn't want to break down. Lucy wouldn't have wanted to grieve over her death - she would have wanted them all to be strong and accept it.

He spotted Victoire on of the chairs in the corridor, one hand on her forehead, her elbow resting on her knees. Her silvery blonde curls were in tangles. She was very distressed, Teddy knew, for she had often told him that Lucy had been her favourite younger cousin. Though they were opposites - for Victoire had been very elegant since her childhood whereas Lucy had been very messy - she adored her very, very much.

Teddy shuffled over to her and put a hand on her shoulders. "Hey," he murmured.

Victoire looked up. She was a mess, indeed. "Hey," she sniffed, dabbing at her bloodshot eyes with the back of her hand. "When did you get here?"

"Just now. I came in with Harry."

"Is he going to investigate?" she asked.

Teddy looked over at Harry, who was muttering darkly to George and one of the Aurors who had accompanied them there. Every now and then Harry would sneak a glance at Percy. "I think so."

Victoire bit her lip. "They're suspecting foul play, you know."

A chill ran through his spine. "Murder?"

Victoire nodded. "Powerful men like Uncle Percy have a lot of enemies."

"Harry'll find him," Teddy said firmly. "If anyone can, it's Harry."

They both looked on as Harry slowly walked over to Percy. The moment Percy saw Harry, he threw himself towards him, sobbing, if possible, harder. Harry himself looked so tortured, and it seemed as though it took him all his effort not to become a wreck himself. He pursed his lips tightly, gently patting his brother-in-law, while a tear rolled down his cheek. Teddy had never seen Harry this emotional before. As an Auror, Harry always tried his best not to become emotional even in the toughest of cases. The closest Teddy had seen Harry close to breaking down was when the case was about a little girl who had been thrown off the roof. The girl had been Lily's age then, and upon seeing the mangled body, Harry had to step outside for some air. He was as white as sheet, his eyes haunted, and Teddy knew Harry had been wondering about what would have happened had it been Lily instead of that girl.

Teddy looked away. None of the Weasley children could bear to look at Lucy. He quickly did a head count. Frowning, he did it again. "Where are Molly, Dom and James?" he asked Victoire. "Are they okay? They shouldn't be roaming off, what if -"

"Calm down," she cut across him, resting a hand on his shoulder. "Molly and Dom are upstairs. Molly refused to come down. She can't believe that..." she trailed off, glancing towards Lucy.

"And James?"

She shrugged. "He came in, all wild eyed and shaken up. And then he saw Lucy and just ran out of the house."

Teddy stood up. "See you in a bit," he whispered to Victoire.

She grasped his hand. "Where are you going?"

"To see Lucy."

"No, don't," she said quickly, her eyes tearing. "It's - it's horrible. She's been so badly disfigured, Teddy. It scared the hell out of me."

"Victoire, how bad can it be? Don't worry, I've seen worse pictures. I'll handle it.

She still looked doubtful, but let go of his hand anyway. Giving her a weak smile, he made his way into the bubbly room, which was in stark contrast with the setting. Dolls and stuffed toys were put neatly around the room, grouped together according to size or colour. The bed sheets were crumpled up, and Teddy knew Lucy would have a fit if she could have seen it. He felt a knot in his stomach thinking about her, alive and happy. He walked slowly towards Lucy's still form, afraid of what he'd see there, wondering what on earth had Victoire so shaken up.

He hadn't expected the scene to be so mortifying.

Almost all of Lucy's body was covered in tiny blisters. Tiny red spots dotted her skin and her face. Her hands were scrunched together, her knuckles white, her nails digging into her palms. A thin band of light traced the shape of her body, presumably drawn by the Aurors. Her body laid there, twisted and crumpled up, as though she was having a violent seizure. Her eyes had been closed, but her expression was that of intense pain, and her mouth was open in a silent scream.

_Rigor mortis._ Her body had already hardened. She would have to be buried that way.

He clutched the bed for support, his legs feeling weak. No wonder Victoire had been so shaken up. It was terrifying to see.

Audrey sat beside him, staring hard at Lucy's mangled figure, and Teddy was at a loss as to how she could see her daughter in that condition. Her face was expressionless, her eyes hardened and her jaws set. Her hand rested delicately on Lucy's thigh, as though she were afraid she'd hurt her. And yet she said nothing; she simply sat there, looking into her daughter's face, unmoving.

Teddy walked away, quickly as he could, not wanting to intrude on something that felt so personal.

"Teddy?"

He turned. It was Ginny.

"Have you talked to Harry?" she asked, her voice firm and strong, her eyes hard. Teddy admired her ability to stay resolved even in such a situation.

"No," he answered. "We came as quickly as possible; I haven't spoken a word to him about this. Do you think someone killed her?"

"Yes," she replied. "And so do the others. I don't believe she would have committed suicide, and this doesn't seem like a natural death."

Teddy didn't reply. _Who would want to kill Lucy?_

Harry spotted the duo and walked up to them, wrapping an arm around Ginny, who rested her head on his shoulder. Looking at Teddy he said, "It's a murder."

Even though he knew it was coming, the confirmation chilled him to the core. Here was proof that someone had wanted Lucy dead - that someone hated her so much to have her killed.

Ginny looked up. "You've confirmed it?"

Harry nodded grimly. Somehow, Teddy sensed there was more to the story.

"And?" Ginny pressed on.

Harry hesitated. "Well, um... she was..."

"What?"

Harry bit his lip and looked away, obviously contemplating on how to break the news. Teddy raised an eyebrow. What could this be about?

"What is it, Harry?" Ginny prodded her husband.

"Well," Harry said, taking off his glasses and wiping them as slowly as he could. He then took a deep breath, put them back on slowly and turned to Ginny. "Shewaspregnant."

_What?_

"Ginny..." Harry looked tortured. "Lucy was pregnant." 

**A/N 2: Dun dun dunn! :D How do you think that was? Review please!**


	3. Chapter 2: Against the Grain

**A/N: response to wheresthewolf: Thank you so much! :D**

**Here you go; the next chapter. Hope you guys like it.**

"Harry," Ginny whispered, raising her hand up to her mouth, her eyes wide. "What are you saying?"

But that couldn't be right, Teddy thought, opening his mouth to protest. Lucy didn't have any boyfriend, and she simply wasn't the type to have a one-night stand. As a cool sort of older brother, he knew about the relationships of every one of the Weasley children - even if they weren't able to tell their own parents. Teddy even knew about Rose, who was currently in a secret relationship with none other than Scorpius Malfoy.

So unless there was something else in play, Lucy couldn't have been pregnant.

But before any words could come out of his mouth, someone interrupted him.

"Dad?"

The voice sounded so feeble and so desperate that for an instant Teddy couldn't recognize it.

Turning around, he found himself looking into James' ashen face. He looked like he'd been through hell and back. His hair was tousled up, and he was as white as sheet. His eyes were bloodshot - he had been crying. Teddy remembered that Victoire had said he'd ran out of the house on seeing Lucy, and he wondered where James had gone, and when he'd come back. Judging by his looks, Teddy had a feeling he'd gone to a pub to wash off his sorrows.

"Dad is it… is it true?" he managed to gasp, looking at Harry longingly, as if begging him to deny it.

Harry nodded. "Yes. She was pregnant."

James took a deep breath and blinked several times. Ginny went over to her son and hugged him. Everyone knew that Lucy and James had been very close ever since they were very little; the news would be very tough for James in particular.

He staggered in Ginny's arm. Taken by surprise, Ginny couldn't support him. He fell to the floor, all crumpled up.

"James!"

Teddy's eyes widened as he rushed forwards to help his god-brother, and though he knew James was bound to be upset, he couldn't fathom why James looked like he had just lost everything.

"Lucy was… she never told me… I thought… b-but I - we were so…"

He couldn't make head or tails of what James was going on about. Teddy looked on as James blabbered away, staring into nothingness, not acknowledging their presence at all anymore.

"James, what are you saying?" Harry demanded, crouching down in front of him, and judging by his looks, he had no more idea about what was bothering James that Teddy had. He glanced at Ginny, who looked as lost as him as she held James' hand. "What are you talking about?"

James looked at him in the eyes and whispered, "Dad, I was… the child - the child was mine, Dad."

Harry froze.

James looked a little scared. He took another deep breath and steadied himself. "Never mind. I-I guess... you continue with your investigation, Dad, I'll just..."

He bit his lip, standing up and stumbled out of the room.

Ginny pulled herself up. Squeezing Harry's shoulder, she murmured, "I'll go talk to him," before following after her son, calling his name.

It took Teddy a while for the whole thing to register in his head. Normally he would have felt indignant, but that feeling never came. In the light of the present situation, it seemed very insignificant.

Suddenly he understood why the two of them had always looked so radiant around each other. He had never missed the stolen glances during family dinners, neither had he failed to notice that James would always protect Lucy during snowball fights and Quidditch matches. What he had always interpreted as brotherly affection had actually been much, much more.

And he knew why James had been so tortured.

He looked at Harry, who was staring hard at the door of the room James had disappeared into.

"Harry?" he said. "You okay?"

Harry jerked his head. Slowly, he looked at Teddy. His eyes looked like they'd suddenly aged a hundred years. "Yeah, I… yeah."

"This changes things," Teddy sighed. "It really does."

* * *

It was a while until Teddy finally got home for the night. Since the Medi-witch had announced that it had indeed been a murder, Harry had taken charge of the case, and surprisingly he had asked Teddy to assist him. Bewildered, Teddy had tried to refuse, saying that he was too unqualified for such a high profile job.

"Percy trusts you," Harry had said. "In fact, we're the only two he trusts on this. You're in."

And so they had officially started the investigation.

With a flick of his wand, Teddy switched on the lights in his was the same one his parents had lived in, and though he could have easily managed to rent a new apartment, he preferred this house much more. It was full of his parents' memories - the parents he'd never known. If he closed his eyes he could imagine his father walking down the stairs, wearing the same threadbare robes he'd seen in their photographs, or else he could feel his mum making breakfast in the kitchen, knocking over pots and pans in the process. In this house he could feel truly close to them, to their memories, and he knew he couldn't have done it elsewhere.

He threw the files he was carrying onto the coffee table and unfastened his cloak, throwing it casually onto the armchair beside him. Stretching, he sat down on the sofa and began to pore over the notes he had made so far.

_Victim had no apparent enmity with anyone. _

_High profile parents. May or may not have had enemies. _

That was an understatement. There were many people out there who hated Percy, including other candidates for the top seat. Teddy knew them personally, though, and none of them seemed like to kill an innocent child for revenge. His training had taught him, however, not to trust people by their looks. They could not disregard anyone.

_Death occurred in the early hours of morning._

No one could have got into their house with all the wards cast by the Aurors and old Order members alike. That suggested long term untraceable methods, including slow poisons or weakening hexes.

_Middle of vacation._

Could it have been anyone inside Hogwarts? Lucy would know not to eat anything given by people she didn't know. That put her friends, classmates and teachers at the top of the list. And it would be something that she had to be constantly consuming in the case of poisons, such as chocolates or medicines. He'd have to ask Percy if she had been taking in any of them.

The fireplace burst into swirling green flames. Jerking, Teddy looked around to see who had been calling so late at night.

He was mildly surprised to see Victoire.

"Hey," he said, getting up and hugging her. Gingerly, he kissed the top of her head, catching a whiff of his favourite shampoo.

"Hi," she breathed against him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Are you busy?"

"Nope," he said, pulling away from her. "You all right?"

Victoire nodded as she took a seat on the sofa. Her eyes were still puffy, though, and her lips slightly swollen. "Better than before. Dad, Mum and Dom are all spending the night at Uncle Percy's . I doubt any of them would get any sleep, though. Uncle Percy was still pretty shaken up after everyone left. He kept on going on about how he never got to say sorry to Lucy. I couldn't bear to see it."

"Why, though?" Teddy voiced the thoughts that had been nagging him all day. He started to pace the room. "Who would have killed Lucy?"

"I wish I knew," Victoire sighed, her eyes following him. "She was just a kid... barely of age. She had her whole life ahead of her."

Teddy hesitated for a second before asking, "Do you think that anyone inside Hogwarts would...?"

"No," Victoire replied at once. "From what I've seen, she was a very quiet girl who only mingled with either the family or a couple of her good friends. She wasn't the type to mix with the wrong crowd. No drugs, no bitchy girlfriends."

"Did anyone have a grudge against her about anything at all?" he asked. "From the evidence, it strongly suggests she was under some long term administration. And that's only possible if the killer's from inside Hogwarts."

The though sent a chill down his spine. All of a sudden, Hogwarts wasn't safe anymore.

Victoire shook her head "Not that I'm aware of. But whoever it was, you'll find them, won't you?" she asked softly.

Teddy stopped pacing and shuffled over to the sofa. Taking a seat beside Victoire, he took her hand and slowly stroked it. "Yes. We will."

Victoire rested her head on his shoulders. "James is shaken up badly. He won't talk to anyone."

"Do you know anything about them?" Teddy asked.

Victoire hesitated slightly before answering, "Yes. They were... they were together."

"He told me today," Teddy said quietly. "Harry and Ginny, too. He said that the... child Lucy was carrying was his."

Victoire nodded. "I knew about it."

Teddy was surprised. "You never told me."

"They made me swear not to tell anyone," Victoire replied, biting her lip and looking at Teddy apologetically. "I wasn't supposed to know either, really. I found out by accident. It was a few months ago, when we were at Grandpa Weasley's place. Everyone was outside. I needed to go to the loo, so I was inside the house, going up to Dad's old room when I suddenly heard... voices."

Teddy raised his eyebrows. "And let me guess..."

Victoire smiled slightly. "And they were making smooching noises and everything. For a second I thought maybe Rose had somehow snuck Scorpius in, so I pushed the door open, hoping to tell them off."

Teddy knew what was coming next.

"Imagine my surprise when I found James and Lucy inside. I was a bit grossed out, to tell you the truth," she admitted, not looking at him. "I mean, they are cousins and everything."

"That's about how I felt when I found out," Teddy agreed.

"I threatened to tell Uncle Percy about it, but they begged me not to. They didn't want anyone else in the family knowing about it, either; I think they were afraid of how Uncle Percy would react if he ever found out."

"How long have they been together?" Teddy asked, genuinely curious.

"Lucy later told me that they got together in their fifth year."

"Two years now," Teddy calculated.

Victoire nodded. Teddy kissed her cheeks softly as she nuzzled into his neck, sighing dejectedly. "They loved each other a lot," she mumbled, twirling the hem of his robes in her finger carelessly. "He spoke so endearingly about her, you know? It was obvious. And then she... she told me that she was pregnant and she was worried what James would say about it. I told her not to worry, I told her to go tell him, that they'd work it out together..."

Victoire was close to crying again, Teddy could feel that. He brought her closer to him. "Did she tell him?"

"I don't know. She didn't tell me."

"Victoire," he said, frowning. "Was she acting oddly recently? Do you know anything about her behaviour, or..."

"Well, other than the bouts of morning sickness and the itchiness, no. She was perfectly happy. Nothing out of the ordinary."

Morning sickness. There was something that seemed vaguely familiar, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"She was throwing up?"

Victoire nodded. "She was throwing up a lot, yes. And Dom even told me that Molly said Lucy was having gastric problems. Her throat and her stomach burned and her face and limbs itched a lot. That's common in pregnancies, though. It happens to everyone." she paused for a while, frowning. "The itchiness isn't supposed to come until later, though, not until the baby bump starts to show and the skin stretches. That's what we read in Healer training. It wasn't supposed to happen now."

His Auror training kicked in. "Is that all? Just vomiting and itchiness and stomach aches?"

Victoire nodded. "Well, she did mention something about bloody diarrhoea, too, but -"

Teddy paled.

"Teddy what's wrong?"

"I - I think I..." he couldn't bring himself to speak. The symptoms... memories from his potions course came flooding into his brain.

Victoire looked panicky. "Teddy, do you know anything -?"

And for the second time that night, the fireplace burst into green flames. "_Teddy,_" said Harry's voice. _"Come to my office right now."_

He had to tell Harry what was going on.

"Go home now," he told Victoire. "I'll talk to you tomorrow."

Victoire looked bewildered. "No, Teddy, I -"

"Trust me," he told her, kissing the top of her forehead. "I'll tell you everything later. I love you."

"I love you too," she whispered. She stepped into the fireplace, and in a swirl of green flames, she was gone.

A minute later, Teddy found himself rushing down the hallway to Harry's office. The Auror office was empty except for a couple of senior Aurors hunched over their desks, working on God knew what. Teddy skidded to a halt in front of Harry's office door, and without knocking, he let himself in.

"Teddy, there you are," Harry said, standing up. His face was grim. In his hands was a thin roll of parchment.

"Bad news?" Teddy asked, fearing the answer.

"I've just come from supervising the post-mortem," Harry replied. Aside from the coroner and the Medi-wizard, Harry was there as the duty-Auror. Harry had seen many post-mortems in his life, but Lucy's had so far been the most daunting, and he prayed to Merlin that he never had to face that again."Guess what they found." Harry handed Teddy the post-mortem and toxicology reports.

Teddy unfurled it and skimmed through the details, which mainly stated about her skin rashes and corroding intestines. He closed his eyes briefly, knowing how badly she must have suffered.

He finally stopped when he found the line he was looking for.

His eyes widened. He was right.

_6. High level of toxalbumin found in blood._

Toxalbumin.

His legs weakened. Clutching for the chair, he sat down.

She had been poisoned.

**A/N 2: Review, please?They make me a very happy person.**


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